Two closely related concepts but with marked differences.
At the colloquial level, the difference between ethical or moral behavior is none. Even so, these terms that are commonly used in the field of human behavior have profound differences that are interesting to explore, in order to better understand their meaning.
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What is ethics?
Ethics refers tothe philosophical branch that deals with the study of human morality, trying to establish rules based on reason to guide morality. To achieve this, philosophers who enter the field of ethics face questions such as the nature of good and evil, as well as other moral concepts as universal as possible.
In this way, they manage to establish theories or ethical schemes, ideal ways of behavingbased on the study of moral practices. Ethics is an important branch of philosophy, especially in the sciences, where research must be subject to the control of an ethics committee to ensure good scientific ethical practices.
There are several ethical currents of thought, withgreat proponents such as Socrates, Aristotle or John Stuart Mill. Each of them has a systemic framework that it uses to explain moral and amoral behaviors, while proposing ideal ways of behavior based also on reason and the observation of human nature.
Among these currents we find hedonism, stoicism, utilitarianism or Kantian ethics.
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What is morality?
Morality is a personal experience. We could represent it as the “compass of behavior” of each one, which he uses to navigate coexistence in society. This happens because our own morality depends to a large extent on the social context in which we find ourselves: We behave morally towards the people who are part of our community.
Morality has a personal character, since it depends on the context of each individual, but belonging to a more or less cohesive society with pre-established ideas, your vision about what are right or wrong behaviorswill be influenced by the environment in which you find yourself. Institutions such as the family, religion, or the workplace can shape the morals of individuals.
Thanks to morality, society can exist in a stable way. Without the external influence of society on our morals, there would be too much variation in the behaviors that each one determines appropriate. In fact, some sociobiologists propose biological and evolutionary explanations of morality, which would have emerged as an adaptive way of living in harmony within a community.
Main differences between ethics and morals
Once both terms have been defined, we can delve into what are the characteristics that most differentiate ethics from morality.
1. Origin
Both ethics and morals can tell us how to behave, but their origins lie entirely. Morality has a rather spontaneousor natural character, which depends on the historical and personal situation of each individual in society. This is because it originates from tradition and acquired knowledge, not universal norms of behavior.
Ethics instead attempts to establish universal norms, laws, or explanations of human behavior. Ethics can guide us, but it is an artifact of reason that exists only at the theoretical level.
2. Tax character
Ethical theories can shape people’s moral codes, but never in an imposing way, that is, a person will not receive harm for not adhering to a certain ethical scheme. On the other hand, acting in a way considered immoral for society usually has negative consequences for the individual, either in the form of direct punishment or simply receiving rejection from society.
A clear example of the non-imposing nature of ethical theories is thediet that does not admit the consumption of meat. Vegan food, for example, bases its philosophy on the ethical dilemma of consuming an animal for self-benefit, and decides that it is not worth it on its own. The person who decides to be vegan, unless he lives in an environment where this is the norm, does so to follow a certain ethical philosophy.
3. Applicability
Ethical theories can be applied, but it is done from reason. This means that someone may follow some ethical doctrine to the letter, but they will be doing so as a conscious alteration of their morals. Ethical guidelines can end up modifying the morals of a society, if they end up being accepted by the majority of it.
Morality, on the other hand, is constantly applied in the vast majority of decisions we make on a daily basis. It is our personal yardstick of right and wrong, but it is greatly influenced by our social and historical circumstances.
In other words, ethics is applied consciously, while morality is applied rather in a constant and practically unconscious way.
4. Objectives
The goal of ethics is to establish artificially, but based on reasoning, the “ideal” way to behave. This can be done in a more or less universal way and requires the observation and analysis of morality in order to complete the ethical framework. In this way, the goal of ethical doctrines is the elevation of the behavior of the people who follow them.
Morality has no concrete objective, beyond the good coexistence of the group of people in society. Morality evolves over time, influenced by various factors, and allows all of us to be part of society without too much friction between us.
5. Universality and Context
Context is not the most relevant thing for ethical theories. In fact, it is rather insignificant to them: They try to establish universal theories. This means that ethical frameworks try to give an “objectively better” behavioral guide, without the need to contemplate the social context in which they exist.
Context, on the other hand, is fundamental to the explanation of morality. In some countries the death penalty is defended and seen as the right thing to do, while in others such executions are frowned upon. In this example, depending on the “country” context, different populations have different feelings about a particular event. That’s why we say morality is contextual.
References
- Mill, John Stuart (1998). Utilitarianism. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-875163-2.
- Aristotle. Nicomachean ethics.
To the classic question “what do you do?” I always answer “basically I am a psychologist”. In fact, my academic training has revolved around the psychology of development, education and community, a field of study influenced my volunteer activities, as well as my first work experiences in personal services.